Signs Your Dog ‘Needs To Go’!
How do know if your dog needs the toilet? Understanding and reading your dog is crucial when toilet training your dog. Do you see them wander to the door, pace, sniff around on the floor, circle, pause on the spot? If you don’t recognise the signs when a dog needs the loo, accidents will happen.
Understanding the signs or ‘the look’ (they often have a look of desperation) will enable you to take them outside and prevent accidents from happening.
It is important to praise them when they have gone in the ‘right’ spot. Be sure to praise and reward them then and there, don’t wait until they come back inside as the message will be lost.
When toilet training your dog, if there is an ‘accident’ inside, it is best to ignore it. Do not react, just clean the area thoroughly with a non-ammonia based cleaning product to remove the scent and reduce the likelihood of it happening in the same spot again.
Never punish your dog or ‘rub his noise in it’ as this will not teach him anything, all it will do is create fear and anxiety. Using positive reward training techniques is far more effective than any form of punishment.
Toilet training your dog, whether he be a puppy or an older dog are fundamentally the same thing. The main difference is a puppy is learning from scratch and has less bladder control, but does not come with ‘history’, meaning he is basically ‘trainable’.
If you adopt an older dog, depending on his background and previous life, he may have anxieties, medical problems or even ‘Doggy Alzheimer’s’ in seniors. Any of these conditions could affect successful toilet training your dog, however a trip to the vet will determine if any of these factors are present.
Remember never punish your dog for going in the wrong spot! This will only cause him anxiety and be too scared to go in front of you, which means he’ll go when you’re not looking, leaving you a little puddle present in the wrong spot.
You Can Teach An Old Dog New Tricks!
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dog is never too old to learn basic obedience or toilet training. Dogs aim to please, so being consistent in training and using positive reward techniques, an old dog is capable of learning new things, including toilet training.
Giving a rescue dog or a senior dog a second chance at a happy life is always worth the perseverance.
Accidents Will Happen!
Remember any form of training takes time. Some dogs are fast learners and will pick it up pretty quickly, while others may take a bit longer to catch on. There will be a few (or quite a few) accidents along the way, but be patient and keep calm. It is worth the effort to have no messes to clean up and a well behaved pooch!
Easy As …. 1, 2, 3
Toilet training your dog or puppy is really very easy! It just requires commitment from you, consistency, patience and positive reward techniques. Check out my 3 simple tips for toilet training your dog.
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Sharon Stanton
My name is Sharon Stanton, dog behaviour specialist and founder of yourobedientdog.com, a place to find solutions to all your dog behaviour problems. I am passionate about helping and educating dog owners to understand their dog’s behavioural problems and provide the best training solutions using positive reward techniques. Click here to read full bio ...
